OilPrice by Felicity Bradstock - Apr 19, 2023
• Despite the sharp growth over the last decade, companies are realising that it is difficult to translate wind power into profits.
• Some of the world’s biggest wind energy companies are making huge losses despite their economies of scale.
• Many companies remain optimistic about the growth prospects for wind energy because of generous government support.
Despite the strong push to shift to green by installing more renewable energy capacity, many are asking whether the wind energy industry will be able to bounce back quickly from huge losses last year to develop the wind power needed to fuel the green transition. In 2022, several major wind energy firms reported billions in losses due to a plethora of challenges that have made it harder to develop new wind farms worldwide. Now the fear is that companies around the globe may be unwilling to invest in the wind projects needed to accelerate the movement away from fossil fuels to green alternatives if they cannot see the potential for profits.
Wind energy has grown exponentially in recent years thanks to a huge amount of funding in research and development and the rollout of several large-scale onshore and offshore wind farms around the globe. Innovations in turbine technology have led to the development of giant power generators that are much safer, more reliable, and quieter than their predecessors.
In 2021, electricity generation from wind power grew by a record 273?TWh, a 17 percent increase from the previous year. This rise was around 55 percent higher than that of 2020 and was the highest of all renewable energy technologies. The reason for such rapid growth was the huge investment seen in the development of wind energy projects worldwide, with capacity additions reaching 113?GW in 2020 compared to 59?GW in 2019. The global wind power capacity stood at around 1,870 TWh in 2021, compared to 343 TWh in 2010. Although this figure will have to increase substantially more to meet net-zero goals, to 7,900?TWh in 2030.
More:
https://oilprice.com/Alternative-Energy/Wind-Power/Wind-Power-Has-A-Profitability-Problem.html
